AED donation honours fallen soldiers
Dave Mounsey Memorial Fund honours two fallen soldiers, from Arkona, with donations of two defibrillators for Rock Glen Conservation Area
Donations of two life-saving AED machines honour Lieutenant Howard Vincent Pickering, of the 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles, CEF; killed in 1917; and Rifleman Edgar Dawson Butler of The Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada, killed on D-Day 1944
The Dave Mounsey Memorial Fund is a Canadian charity which donates automated external defibrillator (AED) machines to help save lives and to honour law enforcement, fire, paramedics and military members killed in the line of duty.
The Memorial Fund has donated two defibrillators to help save lives and protect visitors to Rock Glen Conservation Area (RGCA) in Arkona. These two AED machines are donations 265 and 266 from the Fund.
The donations remember two fallen soldiers from the Arkona area in the Municipality of Lambton Shores. The life-saving machines honour Lieutenant Howard Vincent Pickering, of the 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles, CEF; killed in 1917; and Rifleman Edgar Dawson Butler of The Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada, killed on D-Day 1944.
The presentation of the donations took place at the Arkona Lions Museum and Information Centre at RGCA on Thursday morning, July 30, 2026.
Patrick Armstrong is Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Dave Mounsey Memorial Fund. “Lt. Pickering and Rifleman Butler made the ultimate sacrifice for us all,” he said. “These defibrillators will continue the service and dedication to the community …” that Lt. Pickering and Rifleman Butler demonstrated.
Stacey Palen is Workplace Safety Specialist at Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA). She said the generous donation of two life-saving defibrillators is a fitting way to remember the service and sacrifice of the two fallen soldiers.
“We are incredibly grateful for the generous donation of these two automated external defibrillators,” she said.
“Every additional AED in our community represents an opportunity to save a life. These donations strengthen our commitment to providing a safer environment for our staff, volunteers, visitors, and the public while ensuring life-saving equipment is available when every second counts. We sincerely thank the Dave Mounsey Memorial Fund for their investment in the health and safety of our community. What a wonderful way to honour the memory of these two fallen soldiers from the Arkona area.”
PHOTO #1:
REMEMBERING AND HONOURING TWO FALLEN SOLDIERS FROM ARKONA AREA THROUGH DONATIONS OF TWO LIFE-SAVING DEFIBRILLATORS – The donation of the two automated external defibrillator (AED) machines, from Dave Mounsey Memorial Fund, for use at Rock Glen Conservation Area, remembers and honours Lieutenant Howard Vincent Pickering and Rifleman Edgar Dawson Butler, two servicemen, from the Arkona area, who made the ultimate sacrifice. Shown in the photo, at the donation presentation ceremony, from left to right, are: Jan Lucas and Frank Lucas; Michael Bax, Superintendent of Rock Glen Conservation Area (RGCA); Sheila Merrick; Jordan Yantzi, Staff Sergeant, Lambton County OPP; Stacey Palen, Workplace Safety Specialist, Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA); Glenn Stott, Arkona Lions Club; Patrick Armstrong, Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Dave Mounsey Memorial Fund; David Marsh, Vice Chair of ABCA Board of Directors; Doug Crockett, President, Arkona Lions; Andrew Randell, Lambton County Emergency Medical Services; Adam Wisniewski, Arkona Lions; and Nathan Schoelier, ABCA Acting General Manager.
PHOTO #2:
DONATIONS OF TWO AED MACHINES AT ROCK GLEN CONSERVATION AREA REMEMBER AND HONOUR TWO FALLEN SOLDIERS FROM ARKONA AREA THANKS TO DAVE MOUNSEY MEMORIAL FUND – Shown at the donation presentation ceremony, on Thursday, July 30, 2026, at Arkona Lions Museum and Information Centre at Rock Glen Conservation Area, are, from left to right, David Marsh, Vice Chair of the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA) Board of Directors; Patrick Armstrong, Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Dave Mounsey Memorial Fund; and Stacey Palen, ABCA Workplace Safety Specialist. The Dave Mounsey Memorial Fund has donated the two automated external defibrillator machines (AEDs), for use at Rock Glen Conservation Area, in order to save lives and to remember and honour two fallen soldiers from the Arkona area, Lieutenant Howard Vincent Pickering and Rifleman Edgar Dawson Butler.
